paridon



"Feb. 26,- 1924. .7 1,485,049

M. PARIDON MECHANISM FOR ASSEMBLING MATCHES AND THE LIKE Filed April 5. 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Feb. 26, 1924. 1,485,049

M.-PAR[DON MECHANISM FOR ASSEMBLING- MATCHES AND THE LIKE Filed April 5. 1923 2 Sheets-Sham 2 Patented Feb. 26, 1924.

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MICHAEL PABIDON, OF BABBERTON, OHIO, ASSIGN OR TO THE ID IABEOhTlJ MATCH COM- PANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A'CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

Iv'IECHANISM. FOE ASSEliLBLING MATCHES AFB) TH'ELIKE.

Application filed April 5,

the following is a specification. I 1

which I will be This invention relates to machines forassembling matches, splints, toothpicks and analogous articles, having reference especially to machines whereby splint-form articles are collected and transported in segregated quantities and in substantial parallelism. In such machines the articles are.

progressively delivered to the compartments of a partitioned conveyertraveling along a suitable trough, or are deposited in a train of box trays borne by the conveyer.

The object of my invention is to provide simple and efficient means whereby disarranged or awry articles at the tops of the filled traveling compartments, or trays, are swung into parallelism with, and leveled upon the underlying contents of such com partments or trays; and to this end the invention consists in the provision. of spaced-apart flexible 'members, such as chains, that are suspended in parallel catenary curves in close relation to and longitudinally of the path of the conveyer so as to intercept and properly position the disarranged articles as they progress beneath the said members.

The invention also comprises features of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings- Figurel is a front elevation, partly in section, of a'match assembling machine em bodying a preferred form of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section through the machine, as on the line 22 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a plan of a portion of the conveyer adjacent the straightening and leveling chains, showing disarranged matches in the conveyer preparatory to their being acted upon by the chains.

Fig. 4 is a similar view, but showing the conveyer supplied with filled box trays.

The typical machine illustrated in the drawings comprises a horizontal trough 5 supported at and transversely of the dis- 1923. SerialNo. 530,104.

charging end of an inclined feed hopper 6 or other source of match or splintsupply (such, for example, as the carrier of a match-making machine) in such a manner that the matches or splints are progressively delivered into one end of the trough so as tolie transversely thereof and in substantial parallelism with each other. An endless blade-conveyer 7 is arranged to travel longitudinally of and through the trough, and by means of its spaced blades 8 partition the trough into traveling compartments into which the matches are deposited. The trough is provided at its discharging end with an inclined extension 9 into which the matches are delivered by the traveling conveyer, such extension thence conducting the matches to any usual or approved box-filling mechanism. p I

The trough is .slidably supported on spaced brackets 10 on a horizontal bed 11 which is sustained by the frame posts 12. One end of the trough is connected by means of a link 13 with a crank jor eccentric 1r on a shaft 15 having its bearings in brackets on the proximate frame posts. This shaft is provided with a pulley 16 which is operatively connected ,by means .of a belt 17 witha pulley 18 on a drive shaft 19, which, inthe present instance, is illustrated as the power shaft of an electric motor 20. By the mechanism just described the trough is rapidly vibrated longitudinally so as to agitate the contained matches and cause them to settle compactly within the compartments of the traveling conveyer.

The upper horizontal run of the conveyer 7 is supported upon suitably-disposed pulleys 21, the shaftsof which are mounted in appropriate boxes on the 'frame posts. The lower horizontal run of the conveyer is supported and directed by'guides 22 at the respective ends of the trough so as to insure the passage of the conveyer within and longitudinally of the trough. The shaft of one of the pulleys 21 is provided with a sprocket wheel 23 which is connected by means of a chain 2% with a similar wheel 25 on a shaft 26 having'its hearings in brackets on the bed 11. The shaft 26 is equipped with a worm wheel 27 with which meshes a worm 28 on a vertical shaft 29 having its hearings in a bracket 30 on the bed. The lower end of the shaft 29 bears a friction disc 31 with which contacts a 'motion is transmitted from the shaft 38 to the conveyer. The brush wheel 32 is adjustable as usual toward and from the center ofthe disc 31- so as to vary the speed of the latter, as desired. I

While the segregated quantities of matches contained in the traveling compart; ments constituted by the lower run of the blade-conveyer lie transversely of the latter and approximately parallel, yet it frequently happens that the uppermost matches become disarranged and lie in various diagonal positions, as indicated in Fig. 3. As a simple and efficient means to swing such awry matches into parallelism with, and level them upon the underlying contents of the compartments, I suspend, preferably from spaced-apart crossbars 40 on the framework adjacent the supply station, a pair of flexible members, such as relatively light chains 41, in such a manner that they hang in parallel catenary curves positioned in close relat-ion to and longitudinally of the top of the traveling conveyer. These chains are spaced laterally from each other and lie beyond the respective sides of the median longitudinal line of the conveyer, so that as the conveyer progresses the advancing portions of diagonally-disposed upper splints impinge against and are retarded by the opposing inclined lower surface of one of the chains in such a manner that the splints are bodily swung in a horizontal plane until their opposite or trailing portions come in contact with the opposing inclined lower surface of the other chain, in which case such splints are located at right angles or substantially so to the path of travel of the conveyer. The suspended chains, bearing yieldingly upon the straightened splints dtu-ing the travel of the latter, tend to depress and level the splints in the successively advancing compartments, which result is contributed to by the jarring action of the conveyer.

In Fig. 4 is shown a portion of a conveyer having its compartments supplied with box trays 42 into which the splints or matches have been directly delivered at the supply station, the contents of the trays in such alternative construction being straightened and leveled by the action of the chains thereon in the same manner as in the first described construction.

Itis to be understood thatI do not limit myself to the particular construction herein described, as the same may be modified within the principle of my invention and the scope of the appended claims, in which claims the term splints is used in a sense to include matches, toothpicks and similar splint-form articles.

I claiin- 1. The combination with means for impelling a succession of segregated quantities.

top splints, said members being suspended in parallel catenary curves overhanging and extending longitudinally of the path of the progressing splints. Y

2. The combination with means for imtudinally of the path of the progressing splints.

3. I The combination with a trough, a partitioned conveyer movable along the same, means for effecting a relative jarring movement between said trough and conveyer, and

means for supplying substantially parallel splints to said conveyer, of spaced-apart chains suspended in parallel catenary curves overhanging and extending longitudinally of the conveyer at a point beyond the supplying means.

Signed at Barberton, in the county of Summit and State of Ohio, this 30 day of March A. 1)., 1923.

' MICHAEL .PARInoN. 

